There is a very small but extremely vocal group of guys who have had serious issues with the drug and who have taken to the Internet to demonize it. The vast majority of men have no issues at all, while a sizeable minority have minor issues that are quite tolerable. I can tell you from my own experience taking the drug for 12 years that I kept a full head of hair with very minimal side effects. Once I stopped it 7 months ago, I did notice some minor increases in erection quality that had slowly crept up on me over the years, but all my hormones went back to normal within 2 weeks (I had them tested to make sure). I had no decrease in sex drive or ability to perform and I would have never noticed the slight decrease in erection had I stayed on the drug because it was too minor to be recognized as a "side effect." On the other hand, I could have avoided this almost undetectable side effect at the expense of spending my 20's obsessing about hair loss.
Anecdotally, I can also say that I have 4 friends (that I know of) who have taken the drug long term without side effects and all of them have maintained their hair. I have also spoken to numerous doctors (several on this board) who have prescribed finasteride to probably tens of thousands of patients over the years and they all say the exact same thing - about 1% of patients report issues and they always go away after stopping the drug. I'm sure there are more men that have very minor issues but that's the nature of medication - they have side effects. Like I have pointed out before, way more than half of women who take birth control pills have noticeable side effects including decreased sex drive and sensitivity, and you never find them freaking out about it online.
On a side note, in the 12 years I was on the drug, it never even occurred to me that this drug had side effects and I never noticed any difference in my physiology. But when I decided to stop the drug I went online to research and found propeciahelp.com and all the others. All of a sudden, I started having anxiety and even decreased erections. I'm not trying to take anything away from the guys who have actually suffered from side effects, but the mind probably plays a huge role in all this.
Anecdotally, I can also say that I have 4 friends (that I know of) who have taken the drug long term without side effects and all of them have maintained their hair. I have also spoken to numerous doctors (several on this board) who have prescribed finasteride to probably tens of thousands of patients over the years and they all say the exact same thing - about 1% of patients report issues and they always go away after stopping the drug. I'm sure there are more men that have very minor issues but that's the nature of medication - they have side effects. Like I have pointed out before, way more than half of women who take birth control pills have noticeable side effects including decreased sex drive and sensitivity, and you never find them freaking out about it online.
On a side note, in the 12 years I was on the drug, it never even occurred to me that this drug had side effects and I never noticed any difference in my physiology. But when I decided to stop the drug I went online to research and found propeciahelp.com and all the others. All of a sudden, I started having anxiety and even decreased erections. I'm not trying to take anything away from the guys who have actually suffered from side effects, but the mind probably plays a huge role in all this.
you haven't mentioned why you had to stop Propecia ?
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